Subwoofer Advice Needed - ~$1500-$2000

[WillBrink]

I'm going to upset many people with this one. NO matter what, I would NOT get a REL. Period. They are way, way overpriced for what you get. They also engage in some snake oil marketing to sell their way over priced subs. You can do better at half the cost or less. If you just dodge the REL bullet, you will have done yourself a favor. We have had numerous sub threads and REL threads and they would be good resources to read. DSP is the way to go if you can. If not then don't worry about it. Good luck and buy the largest single sub you can or multiple smaller subs. A big sub with DSP will sound very good. Millions of people have great sounding subs using only one sub. But two is better for evening out the sub sounds across the different seating positions. Good Luck and let us know what you end up with!

I can't claim to have extensive experience with REL but I recently tried a T9x as possible replacement for my old Velodyne HGS 12 that finally died, and I was not terribly impressed for the $. I sent it back. Credit to REL in that it is a very compact sub and excellent fit and finish, but it just didn't do it for me. I knew for the $ or less I could do better.

 

[J84]

I can't claim to have extensive experience with REL but I recently tried a T9x as possible replacement for my old Velodyne HGS 12 that finally died, and I was not terribly impressed for the $. I sent it back. Credit to REL in that it is a very compact sub and excellent fit and finish, but it just didn't do it for me. I knew for the $ or less I could do better.

Hi why didn't you like the T9X? Does the T9X have inbuilt dsp?

 

[WillBrink]

Hi why didn't you like the T9X? Does the T9X have inbuilt dsp?

It does not have DSP. I really didn't think that $ for performance in my room, it sounded as I'd hoped, but it's also very compact. The general consensus on REL is not that they produce a bad product, but that they are a poor value for $ and make claims about their (outdated and no longer needed) "high level connection" that is nonsense. Those two issues put REL as a poor choice among typical members of ASR. Back in the day, there was only a few companies making quality subs directed at audiophile types vs HT, and REL was one of them. The other was Velodyne, who made a great sub, but they too were over priced, and the market expanded while they lost market share. I went with the Rythmik FM8 over the T9X.

 

[J84]

It does not have DSP. I really didn't think that $ for performance in my room, it sounded as I'd hoped, but it's also very compact. The general consensus on REL is not that they produce a bad product, but that they are a poor value for $ and make claims about their (outdated and no longer needed) "high level connection" that is nonsense. Those two issues put REL as a poor choice among typical members of ASR. Back in the day, there was only a few companies making quality subs directed at audiophile types vs HT, and REL was one of them. The other was Velodyne, who made a great sub, but they too were over priced, and the market expanded while they lost market share. I went with the Rythmik FM8 over the T9X.

Thanks